My Brave Soldier
by x-I-have-a-write-to-escape-x
Summary: Troy and Chad have left to fight for their country and their people but where does that leave Gabriella and Sharpay? Sharpay lives an empty life and Gabriella's is crowded with noise. Can they both last until New Years? Will Troy and Chad even return?


The snow fell from the sky in giant flakes of beauty, cascading their glitter over the streets of New York and its thrilled inhabitants. The soft winter breeze blew the snow chips in a circular motion, casting a soothing, frosty glow across the city. The bare trees that lined the boulevards shivered in the snowfall and their branches bent in catching the snow. Buildings across the state sparkled as the trees in the windows lit up, emitting a seasonal atmosphere upon the people. Parents gripped their children's mitten covered hands as they danced in the festive flurry, wellington boots of every colour. Couples grasped their hot coffee as they gazed adoringly at each other, revelling in the radiance of the night. Pensioners pulled their duffel coats tighter around them and clenched their walking sticks in their aged palms, smiling gently at each other and looking forward to seeing their families. It was out of a Christmas card. It was perfect. It should have been.

Sharpay clasped her hand so tightly around the delicate stem of her wine glass she thought it might break. She wouldn't have cared. She didn't care about anything anymore.

How come down below, from her advantageous view of the city, everything seemed to flow so magically? Why was everyone so content? Did they not care that she was alone on this cold, wintry night? Did they not care that unlike them, she had no-one to snuggle up to, to keep warm with? And how about why it was _her_ life that had to shatter? Why was it _her_ life that had to fall to pieces, along with her heart? Why was it _her_ heart that was in a million different shards in the pit of her stomach?

She could hear her mother's voice in her head, chanting the same two words she had done since her childhood. '_Sod's law'_.

"I'll give you bloody sod's law' she muttered, clambering off the white leather couch and reaching for the wine bottle. It wasn't a good idea having red wine in this room, possibly the worst room to drink it in. She was breaking her own house rules, she knew that. '_No food or drink in the front room in case of spillage'_. She wouldn't have cared. She didn't care about anything anymore.

Glancing around the open space she grimaced at the cleanliness of it. It was spotless. It was cold. It was... empty.

It was the story of her life.

Ever since she was tiny everything in Sharpay Evan's life was perfect. It had to be, she demanded that it was. Her bedroom was never untidy, its curtains were never rumpled, the bedspread was never crinkled and the walls were never marked. Her appearance was always immaculate, her hair was lacquered stylishly, her makeup was applied intricately and her clothes were always the height of fashion. Her school was the highest achieving in the state; her grades were straight A's, she was the valedictorian and she was chairperson of the school committee. It all seemed perfect but inside, she was empty.

She studied and got full marks because she had no-one to go out with. She kept her room pristine because there was nothing else to occupy her free time. She had the crème de la crème of designer labels because she had no friends to buy presents for. She had a flawless tan all year round because there was no-one keeping her at home during vacation. She was empty because behind the mask, there was nothing.

Then he came along and changed her whole world. She found herself slipping out of her old routine. She got a B on a calculus test and she didn't care. She didn't make her bed until 4 in the afternoon and it didn't bother her. She wore sweats and his hoodie and sometimes skipped a shower, she wasn't fazed. She grew paler as her tan faded and she stayed in the blue city with him, she didn't give a damn. For once in her life she wasn't wearing a mask, and everything was perfect.

Now it was as if she'd gone back to that blank, monotonous time. As if he hadn't changed her at all, as if her life was, and had been all along, empty.

'Hi you've reached Sharpay and Chad, I don't know who you are but if you're that desperate to get through to us, ring our cells, if you're a crazy axe murderer that obviously doesn't apply to you, so yeah...leave a message...toodles!'

She jumped at the sound of his voice like she always did, and smiled at his use of her old catchphrase. He was so unpredictable it was untrue, and that's why she loved him.

"Sharpay sweetheart!" a boozy English voice sounded, "where are you? I thought you were coming to the launch thing tonight at the Plaza? I'm sure I sent you the invite like, months ago, one for you and one for – well anyway darling. They're giving the party bags out soon so get your little tush down here now and let's get sozzled shall we? God knows you need it. Bye gorgeous!"

She had noticed his slip up. It was as if there was an unwritten rule that no-one was allowed to speak his name, none of her friends even dared talk about anything related to the subject. It wouldn't have bothered her. She wouldn't have cared. She didn't care about anything anymore.

She wasn't going to meet Paul at the stupid launch for CK's new perfume. Who cared? The thing stank like a bottle of crap anyway; people only bought it because the countless celebrities they'd hired were plastered on billboards across the country, individually spraying themselves in the disgusting stuff.

The invitations were still propped up on the mantelpiece, blocking the view of the clock. She didn't run by time anymore, watching the clock made it all pass by so much more slowly. She was waiting for New Years, when his last letter promised his return. She had been filled with joy and scribbled a long letter back, declaring her love and her anxiety that he keep safe. That was September. Now it was the 1st of December. She was still waiting.

But if he promised New Years then he would be here at New Years, she told herself. He never broke his promises.

She propped her feet up on the glass coffee table and leant back into the leather, frowning when it made that dreaded noise you always tried to avoid when guests were present. Tilting her head she looked out of the floor-to-ceiling windows that were the entire right hand wall. She could see the stars. Clamping her eyelids tight together and hugging her shivering body she whispered the prayer that she had been reciting since his departure. She wished on the biggest star she could see and felt a warmth flood her body.

She just hoped he could feel it too.


End file.
